


Across the Distance

by bewaretheboojum



Series: Curryverse [4]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics), Red Robin (Comics), Superboy (Comics), Young Justice (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragons, Duck being adorable, M/M, Magic, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:14:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23219092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bewaretheboojum/pseuds/bewaretheboojum
Summary: Tim is away on a mission and Kon is missing him on a deep and unexpected level.Duck is also missing Tim. Poor Duck.
Relationships: Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent
Series: Curryverse [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1530779
Comments: 19
Kudos: 109





	Across the Distance

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to spazzterror for the beta!

Kon was bone tired. The kind of tired that just tugged down on your limbs like they were strapped to fifteen pound weights.

Rubbing tiredly at his eyes, Kon slumped down on the bench at his table at the Blue Bird Inn. Cassie and Bart were on either side of him, eyeing him curiously. Bart was almost vibrating with the effort to not keep asking Kon if he was ok over and over and over again.

"You're sure you're--"

Kon cut Bart off with the wave of one hand and shook his head.

"I told you I'm fine," Kon all but snapped at him.

"You don't look fine," Harper said, sliding up to the table and dropping off three pints of beer and some pretzels. "You look like shit."

"Good to see you too, Harp," Kon said, looking up at her with a grim sort of time.

She eyed him with an interested expression on her face, Kon was about to say something else dismissive when Cassie cut in.

"We didn't order--" Cassie started but Harper cut her off.

"On the house," she said. "Kon looks like he could use the calories."

"Harper, you don't have to--"

"Tim's not here to bully you into eating, so I figure I might try my hand at it. Just be glad I decided to come over here and not Cass..."

"That's fair..." Kon conceded.

"Thank you," Cassie said, lifting her glass in a toast to Harper.

Harper smiled at her and nodded.

"Just let me know what you want to eat. And make sure he eats his whole plate."

"Do you have curry?" Bart asked.

"You bet. Three plates, coming right up."

Cassie and Bart assured her that they would make sure Kon ate every bite and Kon slumped down even farther in his chair before reaching for his glass of beer and taking a long pull.

It was good. A nice malty stout.

"That's Tim's sister?" Cassie asked, as Harper walked away. "They don't look alike."

"They're all adopted," Kon explained and Cassie hummed thoughtfully in response.

Kon, Cassie and Bart were sitting at a table not too far from the door. Kon could see across the room that Steph, Harper and Dick were sitting at the Wayne family table near the kitchen. Kon felt… oddly left out. 

The door to the Inn pushed open then, bringing a gust of wind in with the next group of guests. Kon couldn't help but glance longing over to the cozy Wayne table, tucked neatly into the corner near the hearth. The warmest table in the house.

The table where he sat with Bart and Cassie was nice enough, but he had gotten used to the warmth and familiarity of the Wayne Table...

"When does Tim get back, anyway?" Bart asked. "It feels like he's been gone a while..."

"Nine more days," Kon groaned, crossing his arms on the table and burying his face in them. "Nine whole days."

Cassie let out a low, sympathetic whistle.

"They couldn't have picked a worse time for this mission, with all the new recruits we have to train," She observed, taking a sip of her beer and nudging the basket of pretzels over to Kon.

Kon signed and lifted his head long enough to put a couple more pretzels in his mouth.

"For sure. I'm working 12 hours a day nearly every day to try and keep up with the work," Kon said. "I've even got lower ranks training the newbies and it's still barely making a dent in the work. Between paperwork, correspondence, training and reporting, I'm swamped."

Bart nodded sympathetically and grabbed a few pretzels of his own. 

"Still, the worst is over," Cassie said. "He's already been gone almost two weeks. He'll be back sooner than you know it."

Kon just groaned and shook his head.

He was just so...

So very tired. Tired in a way he had never felt before. His body struggled to wake each morning and his magic came to him slower, more sluggish at his commands than it had been since he first learned to control and channel it. No matter how much he ate or how much coffee he consumed, he was still exhausted all of the time.

It was starting to wear him down more than he wanted to admit. Even to Cassie and Bart.

Another gust of wind blew past their table as another guest arrived in the Inn. Kon fought the urge to shoot the newcomer a glare, deciding it was best to keep his head down and have a few more pretzels before their curry arrived.

Kon was just about to comment on how stupid cold it had been when a familiar and cheerful trill sounded through the air. Kon looked up with a smile and saw Duck low flying in their direction, just above the heads of the patrons in the room, skimming some ponytails with his long, whiplike tail.

Cassie and Bart both exclaimed when Duck came to a skittering stop on their tabletop, knocking over their basket of pretzels and almost tipping over Cassie's beer. She grabbed it just before it spilled all over the three of them.

Duck was clearly happy to see Kon. He trilled and chirped a greeting, wrapping the end of his tail firmly around Kon's wrist as he climbed up Kon's arm to his shoulder to curl around Kon's neck. He tucked his nose into the collar of Kon's shirt and let out a contented humming trill.

"Hey Duck, long time no see," Kon said, running a finger over the ridge that ran down Duck's back.

"Duck?" Cassie asked, eyeing Duck in horror.

"Duck is Tim's pet," Kon explained. "He and I are buddies, aren't we Duck."

Duck let out a chirp in agreement as he nuzzled Kon with tickling whisker tendrils.

"No kidding," Cassie said, a little hollowly.

"Is he being a pest?" a cheerful voice asked and Kon looked up to see Tim's oldest brother Dick walking over to their table, Cass close behind him.

"N-no!" Cassie stammered, looking up at him. "No he's no pest at all!"

"Looks like he spilled a little of your beer," Dick observed, nodding at a damp spot on Cassie's jerkin.

"Oh just a little bit," she laughed, and it sounded nervous and forced.

"He was excited to see me, I think," Kon said, looking up at Dick with a smile.

"I guess so," Dick said, eyeing Duck tucked up into Kon's collar. "You must be Kon. I'm Dick, by the way."

"Nice to meet you," Kon said, they shook hands over the table.

"Duck's been staying with Cass while Tim is gone, but he's clearly missing Tim," Dick put in and Cass nodded in agreement behind him. "Looks like he's happy to see you."

"I'm happy to see him too," Kon said, smiling warmly down at the lump in his sweater.

"Kon totally gets the 'missing Tim' thing too," Bart put in. "We were just talking about how Kon can't wait for Tim to get back."

"Oh yeah?" Dick asked, lifting a thick eyebrow at Kon. He was looking at Kon with a pleasant expression on his face, but Kon could see Dick watching him with considering, pale blue eyes.

Kon fought down a shiver that had nothing to do with the windy draft that blew through the inn again when another person entered. It was pretty clear that all the Waynes were deeply protective of Tim. Cass, Harper and Steph reiterated that whenever they had a chance. Dick was conveying it silently now, though...

Cass walked over to reach a hand out to Duck, who still had his head tucked into the collar of Kon's shirt. He apparently knew that Cass was beckoning him, because he let out an annoyed little huff that only really caused a tiny puff of smoke to come up out of Kon's collar and make him sneeze.

Cassie and Bart both laughed at that and Kon grinned up at Cass and Dick.

"Seems like he wants to stay," Kon said.

"Seems like," Dick agreed, still watching Kon thoughtfully.

"I'm heading home as soon as I've eaten. I can drop him back with Cass before I leave, if that's ok."

Cass nodded that it was ok and Dick looked like he wanted to disagree with her, but he didn't.

Cass and Dick made their way back to their own table and Kon, Cassie and Bart watched them go.

"Soooooo, is anyone in his family not hot?"

"Harper is terrifying, which is not a quality I consider to be hot..." Kon mused.

"That's because you're ultimately a coward," Cassie cut in.

Kon rolled his eyes at her and shook his head.

"I haven't met Jason yet, but from what I hear he is pretty scary in his own right."

"Jason Todd?" Bart cut in. "Isn't he, like, a smuggler or something?"

"What vicious rumors are you spreading in my inn?" Harper cut in as she slid a few bowls of curry in front of them. "Where would you ever hear something like that?"

"It's pretty much common knowledge," Bart pointed out.

Harper lifted an eyebrow at him in a menacing manner.

"I haven't heard about it," Harper said, pointedly. "And don't go spreading rumors about my brother around my inn. I don't like it and Tim wouldn't either."

"We wouldn't dream of it, Harp," Kon promised and took a bite of his food.

Harper stood over him watching him eat for a long moment before nodding approvingly.

"You make sure you eat all of that. You're looking a little pale. Stop by the kitchen before you leave and I'll make sure you get some soup."

"Harper that's too much, I wouldn't want--"

"If Tim comes back and you're sick, he'll have to take over your share of the work along with his. I'll part with a few bowls of soup to save myself the angst and drama. Make sure you stop by on your way out."

Kon promised he would and as Harper walked away Cassie nodded.

"I see what you mean about her being terrifying," Cassie said conversationally as he spooned up curry and rice.

"Right?"

"She seems nice though," Bart put in between mouthfuls. "Worried about her brother like that."

"That seems like a Wayne Family theme that extends beyond Tim," Cassie observed. "Did you see how fast she shut us down when we were talking about Todd?"

Duck trilled a cheerful little call when he heard Jason's name, as if to lend him a Duck Seal of Approval.

"Listen, I've been talking with the Wayne crew for weeks," Kon said. "I'm not totally sure he is a smuggler."

"What do you think he is?" Cassie asked, curious.

"I try really hard not to think about it..."

They finished their food and beers and talked for a few more minutes before Cassie headed out for the night. Bart said he would walk Kon home and they made their way over to the Wayne Table.

Cass and Steph were still sitting at the table, but Dick had left for the night. Harper went to the kitchen to get Kon his soup and some sweet potatoes to coax Duck out of Kon's sweater.

The usual coaxing methods had not worked...

"Harper is right, you are looking a little rough," Steph said sympathetically as she looked up at Kon. "Make sure you get some sleep."

"That's absolutely the plan..."

It took five minutes and a big plate of sweet potatoes to coax Duck out of Kon's shirt. When he finally went over to Cass and started eating, Steph and Harper rushed Kon out the door while the tiny dragon was still distracted.

Kon and Bart were laughing and still buttoning their coats as they left the Inn and started their walk home.

It took them about ten minutes to get to Kon's place and they chatted about Duck and the curry and the beer while they walked.

"You sure you're ok?" Bart asked Kon as they came to a stop in front of the house where Kon was renting a room from a small family.

"Yeah, just tired that's all," Kon insisted.

"We've been friends for years," Bart pointed out. "I haven't seen you get sick since before you came into your magic."

Kon puffed out a sigh and shook his head.

"I really think it is just over-work. I'm not sick. I'll be fine."

"You'll be fine in nine days when Tim gets back to help you out," Bart put in.

At that, Kon felt his heart trip a little in his chest. The thought of Tim being home, being close to him, touching him and feeling his skin against his fingertips while they sparred. The thought of Tim in the hot springs under the inn, the thought of Tim's smiling face. It all made Kon feel...

Even more tired, actually.

"Yeah, nine days. Not so much, right?" Kon asked, giving Bart a crooked smile.

Bart looked at him doubtfully but shook his head, said goodnight and headed back to his own place.

Kon watched him go, walking quickly into the night.

^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*

Tim was back.

Finally.

While Kon knew, objectively, that it was true, the feeling of his magic leaping and roiling in his stomach somehow made Kon even more certain of it.

Sun beams shone through the large glass windows in the Wayne Castle, casting shapes and colors on the stone walls and floors of the corridors that Kon walked through. Despite the chill of the season, the castle was warm. The thick rugs were soft against Kon's aching feet and the tiredness in his muscles melted away as Kon got closer and closer to Tim with each step.

Tim was in Wayne Castle, Kon knew it. He just needed to find him.

He wanted to tell Tim about all the things he had managed to accomplish while Tim was away. He wanted to explain to Tim all the training he had done with the new recruits. The new intelligence he had gathered, how he had taken Duck from Cass for an afternoon and taken the little dragon to a pond so he could chase minnows until he had tired himself out.

Kon smiled to himself and felt his magic getting stronger, more impatient, inside of him the closer he got to Tim. Corridor after corridor, passing archways and sconces and chandeliers, Kon finally came to a stop in front of the door to Tim's room.

Feeling a thrill shoot through him, Kon twisted the knob and pushed the door open.

The door led, not into a bedroom, but into an open courtyard. The whole thing was lined with large pillars supporting beams from which sheer white curtains hung. There was a small fountain in the center of the courtyard and everything, each stone bench and the full expanse of the floor was covered in thick, rich piles of pillows.

The pillows were plush and covered with different colored fabrics. Some were a deep, rich red, a few were a bright golden yellow. Dark green pillows mixed with deeper black ones as they scattered across the courtyard.

And off to one side, reclining in the pillows, was Tim.

Tim was wearing loose fitting pants and a sheer sleeveless top. A flowing scarf was wrapped around his pale, slender neck. He was watching with idle curiosity as Duck danced and played with the birds in the trees just beyond the barrier of pillars and curtains.

When Kon stepped into the courtyard, Tim smiled languidly at him and gestured for Kon to come sit next to him in the pile of pillows.

Kon went without a thought as if drawn by a magnetic force. 

He smiled back down at Tim as he relaxed into the deep plush of the soft pillows.

"This," Kon sighed, letting out a deep breath, "is amazing."

Tim hummed in agreement, rolling on to one side to eye Kon consideringly.

"Yeah, I felt like, between my mission and you covering all the work for the platoon while I was gone, we both deserved to relax a bit..."

"You have no idea," Kon said and started to tell Tim all about what had happened while he was gone. But Tim cut him off with a short gesture of his hand.

"No, let's just... Let's just relax for now," Tim said.

Kon huffed out a contented sigh and saw that Tim had a point.

Looking over at Tim he saw that Tim had closed his eyes and relaxed back into a dark red plush pillow. It made his dark hair and pale skin stand out starkly in contrast.

And here, in the dimming light of the gold and orange setting sun, amidst the sheer, billowing curtains and piles of pillows, Tim looked to Kon almost like a demi-god, waiting to be worshiped.

Kon felt his mouth go dry and his magic fluttered up and danced inside him at the sight.

Kon did not realize he had moved until he felt the skin of his hand pressing against Tim's upper arm. Tim opened his eyes slowly and looked at Kon thoughtfully. He slowly blinked his beautiful blue eyes and gave Kon that shy sort of smile that made everything Kon was feeling seem magnified and enhanced.

"You are absolutely beautiful," Kon heard himself say and before the horror of the realization of what he said set in, he saw Tim's smile widen reassuringly.

"You think so?" Tim asked, tilting his head to one side curiously.

"Absolutely," Kon husked, he rocked up over Tim, pressing him down into the pillows with his body weight.

Tim looked up at him thoughtfully and Kon couldn't help himself.

His mind, his heart, his soul and his magic all cried out to him in that moment. Urging him to press his lips to Tim's. Tim let out a low breathy sigh and his mouth parted for Kon. Kon deepened their kiss, drinking from Tim like he was the sweetest wine.

Kon's hands shifted, moving over Tim's skin, pressing his finger tips, his palms to every inch of Tim that he could reach. As Tim twisted under him, gasping and shifting, begging for more of Kon's touch with his body, Kon felt himself fall deeper and deeper into the base urges inside him, pressing him on and forward.

All Kon could taste was the sweet nectar of Tim's mouth, all he could hear were Tim's dulcet cries, all he could feel was the silken softness of Tim's skin, all Kon could see were Tim's passion darkened eyes and all he could smell was the perfumed sweetness of Tim's pale perfect skin.

Kon found his body moving of its own volition, pressing Tim into the pillows and begging him, pleading with him for more. Kon arched and twisted, the magic deep inside of him practically singing as Tim's sheer clothes melted away into nothing and suddenly they were skin to skin.

Tim let out a high sort of cry at the feel of Kon rubbing against him and Kon tried to whisper soft reassuring words to him but his voice seemed to catch in his throat. Kon found himself unable to speak, unable to breath as his magic took over and poured thickly into Tim, flooding past Tim's skin into Tim's body and then back out into Kon's.

The flow, the rush, the singing pleasure from the eddying current of magic between them all knocked Kon breathless and when he reached out a hand to grasp Tim's...

Kon's hand closed over nothing and he woke with a start. His heart was pounding and his erection was throbbing. Kon's magic still roiled excitedly within him and Kon felt like he could still taste Tim's kisses on his lips.

Kon shook his head and sat up in bed. The sun was just starting to stream in through the window as early dawn peeked through. As Kon felt his heartbeat and breathing begin to even out, he realized he felt more awake, more alert, better rested than he had in days.

Maybe Harper's soup had helped after all...

^*^*^*^*^

Tim came awake with a start, breathing hard. He sat up abruptly in his bedroll and rubbed a hand over his eyes. He tried hard to even out his breathing and his heart rate but didn't quite manage.

Shaking his head, Tim took a deep shaky breath. His skin was tingling, pricking with a usual energy Tim couldn't quite name. He felt his erection pulsing against his stomach and he shivered as the sensitive skin brushed up against the fabric of his pants.

The dream had been... vivid.

More vivid than any other dream Tim could ever remember having.

Sinking back into his bedroll, Tim pulled the blanket up to his nose, warding off the late autumn chill. He shut his eyes and swallowed hard.

Tim felt like he could almost still feel Kon's hands running down along his skin. He could almost still feel the light puffs of Kon's breath against his neck. He could almost feel Kon's lips playing along his jaw. He could almost feel the tickling, spicy press of Kon's magic sinking into his skin.

Tim shivered at the memory of the feel of Kon hovering over him pressing him into the pillows.

Tim had... Tim had never seen a place like the one from his dream. It was covered in plush pillows and surrounded by sheer curtains. The clothes Tim had been wearing felt almost like they were barely there, like wisps of spiderwebs against his skin. They had melted away under Kon's touch as he ran his hands over every inch of Tim's skin that he could reach.

Tim let out a groan and rubbed both hands over his face as he tried hard to ignore the dull throb of arousal that was pooled inside of him.

It had been nearly two weeks since Tim had started out on the road. After just a few days in the field, Tim had started to feel sluggish and tired. He felt almost like he was moments away with dropping from a terrible flu.

The whole trip, all he could think about was home. His own bed, the cozy booth at the Blue Bird, the hot springs...

Which was probably why he was having weird, vivid dreams about Kon...

Ever since Kon had healed him again in the baths all Tim could think about was the warm tingle of Kon's magic, the soft feel of his hands and the glitter of humor and affection in his deep blue eyes.

It had been... distracting.

Taking a deep breath, Tim willed himself to calm down. He felt his heart rate slow and his breathing evening out. His skin stopped prickling and Tim pressed his face into the blankets.

It would be another nine days before Tim got back to Wayne Territories, While just in that moment he was feeling much better than he had for days, he was still longing for home.

Tim drifted back to sleep, thinking about Duck's happy trills, his warm bed and the brilliant, affection smile that always hovered in Kon's eyes and the spicy bush of Kon's magic as it sunk into Tim's skin.

**Author's Note:**

> Thought you guys could use some cuteness during the Quarantine! 
> 
> Hope you're all hanging in there!


End file.
